DENVER – Like a kid with presents all over the place at Christmas, Adael Amador felt so much joy upon scoring the winning run in the Rockies’ 6-5, 11-inning victory over the Orioles on Wednesday afternoon that he truly didn’t know where to go to rejoice.
After sliding into home on Brett Sullivan’s two-run single, he first removed his helmet and tossed it skyward while smiling at teammate Troy Johnston. But it wasn’t a full-throttle celebration as Johnston ran toward Sullivan, who was about to be mobbed in short-center at Coors Field. Amador joined that party that handed the Rockies their first series triumph since Aug. 14-16 at San Francisco.
Why shouldn’t Amador be overcome with boyish joy? At 23, he is not only the youngest player on the team, but the youngest on the 40-man roster. It just doesn’t seem that way.
“There are times when it passes in my head that I am so young, still one of the youngest in this clubhouse,” Amador said, with Edwin Perez interpreting.
But life has happened fast. Beyond some head-spinning career moves, Amador is beyond his rookie year as a parent. He and his wife, Yesenia Amador, welcomed a daughter, Adelinda, on Jan. 12, 2025.
“That matures you quickly, right?” he said. “But there are times, definitely, where I have to remind myself of my age, because it quickly passes. Through experiences, through everything that I’ve been through -- all the hardships -- that I don’t feel like the youngest.”
Amador just seems older because he has been around so long. He arrived in June 2024, fresh from Double-A Hartford for a 10-game debut that ended with an oblique injury. Last year, he bounced between Triple-A Albuquerque and the Rockies, for whom he batted .177 in 41 games.
In show-me-now times, Amador is often treated as old news. His name has long fallen off those lists. Before being called up from Albuquerque for Tuesday’s roster expansion to 28 players, his only Major League action was for five games, Aug. 15-19.
But maybe Amador needs to be seen with fresh eyes.
He homered against the Giants on Aug. 16 in his only start of that stint, and went deep in his first at-bat of the new callup, a 4-2 Rockies victory over the Orioles on Tuesday. His 2-for-4 performance with two runs on Wednesday included a ground-rule double right before Sullivan’s winner. Had the ball not bounced into the stands, TJ Rumfield would have scored the tying run.
But all ended well.
“I saw the ball fall and I was like … it’s not going to get the run in,” Amador said. “That’s when you feel bad. You want to be the guy to pull in the run and help your team. Another part of me wanted it to be a home run. Obviously, if it’s a home run, that gets the run in. But no matter who gets the RBI, he gets the run in and that’s the most important thing.”
It’s basic baseball. But it takes perspective for Amador -- MLB Pipeline's Rockies No. 1 and overall No. 28 prospect before the ‘24 season.
Amador could be the subject of a player development forensic study. Was he rushed in ‘24? Should his range at second base, where he moved after being shortstop, have been more developed before he arrived? The winter after his initial stint, he began addressing his limited defensive range (a process that continues) with changes to offseason workouts and eating.
But suddenly, all that isn’t important.
A new front office expressed that his switch-hitting at-bats could be an asset when he was fully developed, although he is working against the development clock since this is his last year of Minor League options. For his part, Amador trusted the plan. Kyle Karros’ concussion led to the first callup.
Amador was optioned back to Albuquerque when Karros returned, even though he went 3-for-10 with a triple, the homer and three walks against five strikeouts. Karros returned to the concussion injured list, but could be back for a series against the Yankees that starts on Tuesday, so there are no guarantees that there will be a spot for Amador.
At Amador's primary position, the Rockies also have Connor Norby, who has received most of the starts at second base after being acquired from the Marlins at the Trade Deadline, and Ryan Ritter, who is receiving a look after putting up outstanding Triple-A numbers.
“Ever since Spring Training, I felt like I was a part of this team, even if I was in Triple-A,” said Amador, who originally signed in 2019 out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, for a $1.5 million bonus. “I felt I was going to make an impact on this team, that I was a part of this clubhouse one way or another.”